Public policy and public programs to address food insecurity

Household food insecurity is a public health problem, but its causes are rooted in poverty, and thus potential interventions may lie in social policy. A thorough examination of the impact of social policy on household food insecurity has been impeded in Canada by the nature of the available data: household food insecurity is measured on a health survey (i.e. the Canadian Community Health Survey) that contains limited questions that are relevant to social policy. However, there is evidence that policy impacts household food insecurity. Most notably, the majority of people reliant on social assistance in Canada are food insecure, suggesting that these programs are not designed in ways that enable many recipients to meet basic household needs. Research has also examined the relationship of household food insecurity to policies related to energy cost subsidies, housing subsidies, and agricultural subsidies related to milk.

There is no comprehensive policy framework in Canada designed to address food insecurity either federally or at the provincial or territorial level. Many provinces have enacted poverty reduction strategies, but household food insecurity has not been an explicit focus of these strategies, nor has their impact on household food insecurity been evaluated. There has been very little written on these policies from a food security perspective, but some research suggests that current strategies in Quebec, which include support for emergency food programs, are insufficient to address food insecurity and disconnected from the desires and needs of food insecure households.

There has been considerable criticism about Canada’s lack of a coordinated policy response to food insecurity. Although food banks and other charitable food programs continue to grow across the country, there is little evidence that community-based initiatives that are largely reliant on donated food and labour have the capacity to effectively address the very serious food problems facing the nearly one million households in Canada who struggle with food insecurity. Further, there is concern that these initiatives perpetuate the problem of household food insecurity and allow the government to abdicate responsibility. Internationally, Canada’s approach to food insecurity has been criticized with respect to adherence to international agreements to advance the human right to food.

The following articles present research on public policy and public programs to address food insecurity:

Reduction of food insecurity among low-income Canadian seniors as a likely impact of a guaranteed annual income
McIntyre L, Dutton DJ, Kwok C, Emery JC.
Canadian Public Policy 2016; 42(3): 274-286.[Abstract]

Impact of a guaranteed annual income program on Canadian seniors’ physical, mental and functional health
McIntyre L, Kwok C, Emery JC, Dutton DJ.
Canadian Journal of Public Health 2016; 107(2): e176.[Abstract]

An Exploration of the unprecedented decline in the prevalence of household food insecurity in Newfoundland and Labrador, 2007-2012.
Loopstra R, Dachner N, Tarasuk V.
Canadian Public Policy 2015; 41(3): 191-206.[Abstract]